Mom charged in toddler’s death

22-month-old girl found dead in Delphos in April

By J Swygart - jswygart@limanews.com

Shellabarger

LIMA — The mother of a toddler who died hours after being discovered suffering from life-threatening injuries in a Delphos apartment in April was arrested Thursday and charged with the infant’s murder.

Vicky Lynn Shellabarger, 36, of Convoy, was taken into custody after an Allen County grand jury returned an indictment against her earlier this week charging her with murder, an unclassified felony; involuntary manslaughter, a felony of the first degree; and two counts of endangering children.

She was ordered held on $1 million bond pending her formal arraignment, which will be held at 9 a.m. Monday.

The murder indictment alleges that on or about April 28, Shellabarger “did cause the death of another as the proximate result of … committing or attempting to commit an offense of violence … to wit: endangering children.”

According to initial reports from the Allen County Sheriff’s Office, first responders in Delphos were dispatched in the early morning hours of April 29 to an apartment at 218 N. Main St. in reference to an unresponsive child. The 911 call was placed by Shellabarger, the mother of 22-month-old Madilynn Shellabarger, authorities said.

Upon their arrival, Delphos EMS personnel found the infant not breathing. She was transported to Mercy Health-St. Rita’s, where attempts to revive her were unsuccessful and she was pronounced dead.

The death was initially described by Delphos Police Chief Mark Slate as suspicious. An investigation by the Allen County Sheriff’s Office, Delphos police and the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation has been ongoing since that time.

Allen County Prosecuting Attorney Juergen Waldick on Thursday said the child died as the result of blunt force trauma.